Kindred’s length too much to handle for Bowman County in state quarterfinals

MINOT, N.D. — Down by only three to begin the second quarter, Bowman County were holding their own against the defending state champions. Sophomore guards Bishop and Bohden Duffield had all 12 of the Bulldogs’ points in the opening quarter, showing no fear against a much taller #2 Kindred side.

But all the Vikings needed was a little time to settle in.

The length of Kindred on both ends of the court was too much for the Bulldogs to handle. They outscored Bowman County 24-10 in the second quarter that would essentially seal the outcome. They continued their dominance in the second half, pulling away for a 61-38 victory in the quarterfinal round of the Class B state tournament in Minot.

The style of play would’ve favored Bowman County in most games. An uptempo, fast-paced affair is usually a situation the Bulldogs thrive in. However, the Vikings used Bowman County’s best weapon against them, relishing in fastbreak opportunities all afternoon.

“We did a good job to start the game,” Bowman County head coach Nick Walker said. “We got into some foul trouble and lost the rhythm we were in. We turned it over a few times and they got going. Until you play against it, the length and athleticism of that team is a different animal.”

Michael Vosburg/The Forum

The star of the show for the Vikings was senior Paul Olson. The 6-foot-5 forward wasn’t going to be denied good looks at the rim. He finished with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting.

The shortest player in Kindred’s starting lineup was 5-foot-11 senior guard Brock Woehl, the same height as the Duffield twins.

After a competitive first quarter that ended 15-12 in favor of Kindred, the Vikings went on a 10-2 run to make it 25-12. Walker called timeout to try to break up the run and his team responded with a 3-pointer, knocked in by junior guard Sam Andrews.

But the Vikings went on another run, this time 14-5 to end the quarter. Olson, who didn’t score in the first quarter, had 11 in the frame.

It was clear the size of Kindred’s lineup was starting to take over. They were 10-of-15 (66 percent) in the second quarter as a result of being the more physically imposing team. They didn’t need to hit shots from the outside because they were getting the most efficient shots at the rim.

The Vikings followed up their hot shooting mark in the second quarter with a 7-of-11 performance (63 percent) in the third. In addition to the Bulldogs’ struggles, Bohden Duffield picked up his fourth foul midway through the third, making the task of coming back that much harder with one of their top scorers on the bench.

Michael Vosburg/The Forum

Perhaps the most indicative stat that displayed the difference in the aggressiveness on offense was from the foul line. Kindred had seven attempts, compared to just one for Bowman County. The Vikings made all seven.

“We got downhill a decent amount,” Walker said. “They do a good job of staying vertical and blocking shots and contesting them. We don’t see this 6-6, 6-5 lineup much in our region. They did a great job of contesting shots at the rim.”

Bowman County shot 32 percent (16-50) in the game and 27 percent (5-18) from three. Kindred were over 50 percent (25-48) from the field. Bohden Duffield was the only player in double figures for the Bulldogs with 19 on 6-of-19 shooting.

Bowman County will be sent to the consolation bracket. The highest they’ll be able to finish is fifth place. They’ll take on #3 Shiloh Christian at 1:00 p.m. CST on Friday

“We’ll regroup and put a scout together for Shiloh,” Walker said. “They’ll present the same challenge. They’re big and have some shooting to go around…then we’re going to compete our butts off for the next two days because that’s all these kids know how to do.”

BOX SCORE

KINDRED: Paul Olson 19, Jaiden Peraza 13, Maxwell McQuillan, Riley Sunram 9, Brock Woehl 5, Karson Ouse, Presley Peraza, Jorgen Swenson 2
BOWMAN COUNTY: Bohden Duffield 19, Bishop Duffield 9, Kirklan Meschke 6, Sam Andrews 5, Carson Massey 2